Sarah Ashwood’s Favorite Retellings

Another day in the Tales of Ever After Blog Tour. Today, I have a new friend over to talk to us about her favorite fairy tale retellings. Please welcome Sarah Ashwood!

About Sarah:

A genuine Okie from Muskogee, Sarah Ashwood was raised in the wooded hills outside the oldest town in Oklahoma. She’s tossed plenty of stones out of the dirt roads she grew up on, which provided the inspiration for Calden in “The Princess and the Stone-Picker.” Sarah loves mixing fairytale elements with fantasy, as in her Sunset Lands Beyond trilogy and her brand-new series, Beyond the Sunset Lands. In her imagination, she soars effortlessly through magical or historical lands. In real life, she lives (mostly) quietly at home with her husband and three sons. Learn more about Sarah!

These are a few of my favorite fairytale retellings…

By Sarah Ashwood

Fairytales. Most of us are familiar with the classics, especially the classic Disney movies, however far removed from the original fairytale they may be. Personally, while I’m a big fan of original fairytales, I’m also a big fan of fairytale retellings, even the watered down Disney versions. In some cases, I like the Disney spinoffs better. Case in point, Sleeping Beauty. Disney’s version is gorgeous and romantic with a perfect HEA ending, and the princess doesn’t have to sleep for a hundred years. The original story, with its secondary ending of an ogre mother-in-law who ultimately meets her fate in a tub full of vipers and other nasty creepy-crawlies…eh, not so Disney-esque. Can’t blame Disney for stopping before that point.

Anyway, as much I honestly do enjoy the usually darker and more grownup original fairytales, here are a few of my favorites retold by both indie and traditionally published authors:

Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier is a retelling of The Six Swans with a Celtic twist. I love the Celtic setting of the novel, as well as the deep relationship between the two main characters Sorcha and Red. (Caveat: this book does contain a few difficult scenes, and I’d definitely stick it with at least a PG-13 rating.) Exciting, suspenseful, sad, and satisfying, Daughter of the Forest is one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve read it.

Coiled by H. L. Burke. The Psyche and Eros tale, remarkably like the fairytale East of the Sun, West of the Moon, has long been a favorite of mine, so when Coiled released last year I was ecstatic. Coiled is a unique spin on both stories, with a gigantic snake and a cursed sister teaming up against a terrible spell.

Beastly by Alex Flinn. Of course Beauty and the Beast has been retold a million different ways, but I still enjoyed this modern day take! I liked the movie too. What can I say? I’m a hopeless fairytale addict, and I never turn down a good Beauty and the Beast retelling.

The Firethorn Crown by Lea Doue is a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses, another of my favorite fairytales. (Does anyone remember the Little Golden Book edition of that story with the gorgeous illustrations? I must have read it a million times as a kid!) I love Lea’s fun spin on this tale, with a goose, a somewhat creepy underground world and…well, I sorta pitied him, sorcerer-prince. A must read for any fan of the classic story.

Red Riding Hood by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright is another movie tie-in to the film of the same name. I honestly really enjoyed this book and movie. I thought it was the perfect blend of creepy and unusual, with, at least in the movie, some gorgeous cinematography.

There you have it—a few of my favorite fairytale retellings. I hope you enjoy!

To see what other blogs have been sharing fun tidbits and whatnots, visit Kendra’s blog.